Litigations delay compensation payment

Somanya (E/R), Dec. 12, GNA - The Team Leader of the Inventory Task Force of the Land Administration Project (LAP), Mr Stephen Kumadoh, says it is not a deliberate ploy by government to refuse to pay or to delay paying compensations for lands it acquired.'

He said there were many instances where the state was ready to retire the monies owed the landowners but litigations among the recipients or contesting owners for the same plot of land compelled it to lodge the money in suspense accounts.

Responding to concerns by some landowners at a forum organized by the LAP at Somanya on Tuesday, Mr Kumadoh appealed to families applying for compensations to present a unified stance when making their claims. He warned against family members or their surrogates resorting to encroaching onland already acquired and that state agencies in charge of land issues would not shirk their duty in ensuring that the state's interests were protected.

Mr Kumadoh said whether the state fully paid compensation or otherwise, once acquired, the state reserved a bona fide interest in the land and must not be encroached upon.

In addition, he said, the state reserved the right to put such lands to whatever use it felt feasible in the interest of the people. The forum is a strategy being employed by the LAP to present findings of an inventory it had taken of government acquired and occupied lands in four districts in the Eastern Region under a pilot project that is part of an on-going reform in the land sector. Aside the Yilo Krobo District, there is an on-going inventory in the Manya Krobo, Birim South and the Suhum-Kraboa-Coaltar districts and the project is expected to be replicated in the remaining districts. The essence of the inventory is to create a database of state lands, ascertain how these lands have been put to use, pay the necessary compensation where needed or revert part of the land that the state might no longer be keen on.

It was realized that a number of state lands in the Yilo Krobo District and situated at Somanya and Klo-Agogo have been encroached upon.

For instance, nearly 20 acres of the 105 acres of land earmarked for an assembly farm had been taken over by encroachers in Somanya. Other state lands reeling under pressure from private developers include the land proposed for the Somanya sports stadium and some plots belonging to the Klo-Agogo Secondary School. Participants at the forum agreed on the need for the state to protect its interest in the acquired lands including reserving the right to demolish the affected structures.

They also demanded prompt compensations with respect to lands the state acquired to forestall the occurrence of some of the problems. They said default by government in making prompt payments for acquired lands often compelled the original owners to resort to selling out the land to private developers.

The Acting Executive Secretary of the Land Valuation Board (LVB), Mr Bafour Darkwa, said he was hopeful that the forum would enrich the on-going land reform programme by means of a frank exchange between the state and the landowners.

The Konor of Yilo Krobo, Nene Dawutey Ologo, commended the LAP for the initiative and tasked them to tap the expertise of local authorities and landowners to tackle issue of land acquisition in the country more cogently. 12 Dec. 07